5 Super Shady Things You Didn't Know About 'The Bachelor'

5

You Might Go Into Debt Simply Trying To Buy Enough Clothes For The Show

Episodes of The Bachelor double as fashion shows, because there's no better way to set realistic expectations for a potential marriage than constantly dressing like you're on your way to a royal ball. But while the show does give dresses to the two finalists once they reach the last episode, everything else is up to the contestants to get own their own. Every single woman has to bring enough of her own clothing to stay stylish yet comfortable for up to three months in every conceivable situation -- fancy dinners, tropical islands, exotic winter getaways, hikes, pool parties, sitting on planes for six hours. They're even given a lengthy list of suggested items to pack, plus a friendly reminder that you're only allowed two suitcases.

ABC StudiosBest to be prepared for any ethnic or holiday celebrations.

Since the average woman does not attend five cocktail parties and two island getaways in different hemispheres every week, this necessitates a lot of shopping to rapidly expand one's wardrobe. Some women manage to scrape a wardrobe together by borrowing from friends and family, but most have to buy. One woman spent six grand for her appearance on The Bachelor, then got it down to mere a $2,000 for Bachelor in Paradise. Another contestant admitted to dropping $8,000, and there are rumors that some have spent as much as $30,000.

If you're wondering how these women can afford to spend so much on clothes, the answer is that they often can't. Some cash out their 401(k)s, others pile up credit card debt, and one woman remortgaged her house. Now imagine buying and packing thousands of dollars' worth of clothes ... and then being the first person sent home. That's the real reason they're crying in those post-episode interviews.

ABC Studios"Have you ... *sniff* ... have you seen any clothing tags lying around?"

4

Those "Real America" Hometown Dates Are The Fakest Parts Of The Show

Let's pretend for a moment that you haven't secretly watched several seasons of the Bachelor and explain the hometown dates. Cliff or Artie or whoever the generic male placeholder is that season visits the prospective women's families in their hometowns. At each location, they have a date at the woman's parents' house.

3

Contestants Are So Isolated That One Was Reported Missing

It's standard practice for reality show contestants to be denied access to entertainment, news, and outside contact during filming. There wouldn't be much drama if you could excuse yourself to go play Overwatch whenever you saw a fight coming. The Bachelor recently started allowing contestants to bring books, and Bibles have long been permitted ... so that contestants in spiritual crisis can determine if they're somehow violating the sanctity of marriage by competing with 28 other people for the right to marry a stranger. But everything else, like laptops and phones, is confiscated at the door. The goal is to put the contestants in a bubble. If The Bachelor is all that's in your life, you're going to start taking it way more seriously than you probably should.

ABC Studios"I'm not here to meet people and make friends, except for The One!"

2

The Producers Tracked And Tried To Exploit Contestants' Menstrual Cycles

A woman's menstrual cycle has an impact on her emotional state, albeit not nearly to the extent that terrible stand-up comedy routines would have you believe. The Bachelor's producers are well aware of that.

TeoLazarev/iStockSeen here in a production meeting.

According to a book on how the Bachelor sausage gets made, the show's producers tracked contestants' cycles, and tried to use the information to provoke emotional reactions. Basically, if a woman was at the point in her cycle where she'd tear up at Pixar movies -- even the dumb ones, like Cars 2 -- she would be encouraged/harassed into doing something stupid and regrettable, like declaring her love for the Bachelor on national TV.

1

The Screening Process Is Ridiculously Intensive And Very Creepy

Getting on The Bachelor is far more complicated than proving that you're hot and not too ethnic. First, contestants make a video wherein they pitch themselves as a marketable product. Then, if the producers like said video, the real fun begins. During an audition weekend, potential contestants are given a 150-question personality test, which includes stuff like "Do you think you can control things with your mind?" and "Have you ever wanted to kill someone?" After that comes a one-on-one with a producer, followed by a rapid-fire Q&A with an army of producers who share one single, dusty soul.

ABC Studios"If you had to put a price on your soul, what would it be? Ballpark figure."